Farmers in Wales feel like they’re part of a social experiment given the current Welsh Government proposal to place an untried and untested approach developed in England at the heart of future Welsh farm policy. That was the message from Farmers’ Union of Wales Carmarthenshire County Chairman Phil Jones ahead of the Welsh Senedd Elections in May. 

Phil Jones, from Clyttie Cochion, Llanpumsaint, Carmarthenshire, has been farming almost his entire life and looks after 150 acres, grazing 350 sheep under organic management. He took the farm back in hand 2011 as it had been rented out following a family tragedy and is worried about the future of farming in Wales and the effects untested policies will have on the industry.

“Concerns in the farming community that the ‘public goods payment’ policy proposed at the core of the Welsh Government’s Sustainable Farming Scheme threaten the survival of the industry are at an all time high. I feel like I’m part of a social experiment; like every farmer in Wales is part of that experiment. 

Five years ago, ahead of the 2016 Welsh Senedd elections, the Farmers’ Union of Wales warned of the unprecedented challenges facing the incoming Senedd Members and Government. Since then those challenges have not only materialised but been exacerbated and added to. 

Outlining the big issues facing agriculture in Wales at a press conference, which launched the FUW’s 2021 Welsh Senedd Election Manifesto, FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “The materialisation of a far harder form of Brexit than had been promised by those who lobbied for our departure from the EU has restricted access to our main export markets on the continent in ways which are only beginning to be felt. 

“At the same time, the on-going Covid-19 pandemic has changed our lives beyond recognition and has highlighted the fragility of global food supply chains and the importance of a strong farming sector on which our domestic markets should be able to rely for commodity products.

“While such issues have been largely beyond the control of our devolved administrations, the reaction of the Welsh Government to the uncertainty and challenges faced by our agriculture sector has at times been bewildering and counterintuitive, not least in terms of its appetite for drastically increasing costs and restrictions while advocating untried and untested reforms of rural support policies.”

Meanwhile, UK Government cuts to Welsh rural funding - in direct contradiction to promises made repeatedly by those who advocated Brexit - have added to the pressures on Welsh agriculture, the rural economy and Welsh Government, said the Union President.

The Farmers’ Union of Wales is hosting a series of hustings to ensure that farmers have the opportunity to quiz the prospective Welsh Senedd candidates across Wales ahead of the Welsh Senedd elections in May. The hustings, which will take place via Zoom, will give members the opportunity to hear from the candidates about their respective parties’ policies for agriculture. 

FUW President Glyn Roberts said: “The upcoming Welsh Senedd Elections in May are of vital importance to the agriculture sector in Wales and the incoming Welsh Government will be facing unprecedented challenges. 

“In the next few weeks we will have the chance to seek commitments from aspiring Senedd members in the numerous virtual hustings being held. There will be no need to travel and no need to be away from the farm. 

The Farmers’ Union of Wales has rejected the key proposals for the future of agricultural support in Wales set out in the Welsh Government’s agriculture white paper, and called for a genuine Welsh policy to be developed to meet Welsh objectives.

The Agriculture (Wales) White Paper sets out Welsh Government policy proposals for a legislative framework governing Welsh agriculture, as well as forestry and woodlands, over the coming decades. 

Central to the proposals would be moves to ratchet up rules and restrictions, and base farm support payments purely on the delivery of ‘public goods’ - an academic term that in most cases means environmental benefits such as clean air, water quality, and wildlife habitat.

“We of course agree that public goods should be an important part of a future rural support scheme, but delivering employment, economic, social and cultural prosperity should also be fundamental principles that underpin the design of future support mechanisms,” said FUW president Glyn Roberts. 

“We have a proud history of designing agricultural policy for Wales and have previously deviated significantly from English policies - much to our benefit - and we should continue to do so.